On the podcast, Alex Heeney discusses three Berlinale 2026 highlights directed by women: Elle Sofe Sara’s Sámi musical Arrú, Sandulela Asanda’s queer South African film Black Burns Fast, and Sophie Heldman’s 1810 queer period drama The Education of Jane Cumming.
Women Directors
In honour of #52filmsbywomen, we've collected all of our reviews of films directed by women and interviews with female directors all in one place.
Ep. 187 Sound of Falling + Interview with Mascha Schilinski
On the podcast, host Alex Heeney discusses why Sound of Falling is one of the best films of 2025 and interviews writer-director Mascha Schilinski about the image of falling, the film’s sound design, and more.
Ep. 185 Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet with Angelo Muredda
On the podcast, host Alex Heeney and guest Angelo Muredda dig into Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet as a work of adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s novel and why the film left use dry-eyed.
Ep. 182 Couture (with Angelina Jolie) and Alice Winocour’s (TIFF 2025)
At TIFF 2025, Alex discusses Alice Winocour’s film Couture on the podcast, starring Angelia Jolie, and how it fits into Winocour’s body of work about traumatized bodies, outsiders, and backstage stories.
Ep. 181 Between Dreams and Hope and queer and trans survival (TIFF 2025)
At TIFF 2025, Alex discusses the Iranian film Between Dreams and Hope about a trans man seeking gender affirming care, and connects this to other recent international films about the legal and medical barriers for the queer right to exist.
The best acquisition titles at TIFF 2025 (updating throughout the festival)
From Iran’s Between Dreams and Hope to Argentina’s The Currents to Canada’s Meadowlarks, here are the best acquisition titles (films still seeking distribution in Canada, the US, and/or the UK) at TIFF 2025